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.NET Framework Class Library
UnmanagedMemoryStream Class

Provides access to unmanaged blocks of memory from managed code.

Namespace:   System.IO
Assembly:  mscorlib (in mscorlib.dll)
Syntax
Public Class UnmanagedMemoryStream _
	Inherits [%$TOPIC/13e02eft_en-us_VS_110_2_0_0_0_0%]
public class UnmanagedMemoryStream : [%$TOPIC/13e02eft_en-us_VS_110_2_0_1_0_0%]
public ref class UnmanagedMemoryStream : public [%$TOPIC/13e02eft_en-us_VS_110_2_0_2_0_0%]
type UnmanagedMemoryStream =  
    class 
        inherit [%$TOPIC/13e02eft_en-us_VS_110_2_0_3_0_0%] 
    end

The UnmanagedMemoryStream type exposes the following members.

Constructors
  NameDescription
Protected method UnmanagedMemoryStreamInitializes a new instance of the UnmanagedMemoryStream class.
Public method UnmanagedMemoryStream(Byte*, Int64)Initializes a new instance of the UnmanagedMemoryStream class using the specified location and memory length.
Public method UnmanagedMemoryStream(SafeBuffer, Int64, Int64)Initializes a new instance of the UnmanagedMemoryStream class in a safe buffer with a specified offset and length.
Public method UnmanagedMemoryStream(Byte*, Int64, Int64, FileAccess)Initializes a new instance of the UnmanagedMemoryStream class using the specified location, memory length, total amount of memory, and file access values.
Public method UnmanagedMemoryStream(SafeBuffer, Int64, Int64, FileAccess)Initializes a new instance of the UnmanagedMemoryStream class in a safe buffer with a specified offset, length, and file access.
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Properties
  NameDescription
Public property CanReadGets a value indicating whether a stream supports reading. (Overrides StreamCanRead.)
Public property CanSeekGets a value indicating whether a stream supports seeking. (Overrides StreamCanSeek.)
Public property CanTimeoutGets a value that determines whether the current stream can time out. (Inherited from Stream.)
Public property CanWriteGets a value indicating whether a stream supports writing. (Overrides StreamCanWrite.)
Public property CapacityGets the stream length (size) or the total amount of memory assigned to a stream (capacity).
Public property LengthGets the length of the data in a stream. (Overrides StreamLength.)
Public property PositionGets or sets the current position in a stream. (Overrides StreamPosition.)
Public property PositionPointerGets or sets a byte pointer to a stream based on the current position in the stream.
Public property ReadTimeoutGets or sets a value, in miliseconds, that determines how long the stream will attempt to read before timing out. (Inherited from Stream.)
Public property WriteTimeoutGets or sets a value, in miliseconds, that determines how long the stream will attempt to write before timing out. (Inherited from Stream.)
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Methods
  NameDescription
Public method BeginReadBegins an asynchronous read operation. (Consider using ReadAsync instead; see the Remarks section.) (Inherited from Stream.)
Public method BeginWriteBegins an asynchronous write operation. (Consider using WriteAsync instead; see the Remarks section.) (Inherited from Stream.)
Public method CloseCloses the current stream and releases any resources (such as sockets and file handles) associated with the current stream. Instead of calling this method, ensure that the stream is properly disposed. (Inherited from Stream.)
Public method CopyTo(Stream)Reads the bytes from the current stream and writes them to another stream. (Inherited from Stream.)
Public method CopyTo(Stream, Int32)Reads the bytes from the current stream and writes them to another stream, using a specified buffer size. (Inherited from Stream.)
Public method CopyToAsync(Stream)Asynchronously reads the bytes from the current stream and writes them to another stream. (Inherited from Stream.)
Public method CopyToAsync(Stream, Int32)Asynchronously reads the bytes from the current stream and writes them to another stream, using a specified buffer size. (Inherited from Stream.)
Public method CopyToAsync(Stream, Int32, CancellationToken)Asynchronously reads the bytes from the current stream and writes them to another stream, using a specified buffer size and cancellation token. (Inherited from Stream.)
Public method CreateObjRefCreates an object that contains all the relevant information required to generate a proxy used to communicate with a remote object. (Inherited from MarshalByRefObject.)
Protected method CreateWaitHandleObsolete. Allocates a WaitHandle object. (Inherited from Stream.)
Public method DisposeReleases all resources used by the Stream. (Inherited from Stream.)
Protected method Dispose(Boolean)Releases the unmanaged resources used by the UnmanagedMemoryStream and optionally releases the managed resources. (Overrides StreamDispose(Boolean).)
Public method EndReadWaits for the pending asynchronous read to complete. (Consider using ReadAsync instead; see the Remarks section.) (Inherited from Stream.)
Public method EndWriteEnds an asynchronous write operation. (Consider using WriteAsync instead; see the Remarks section.) (Inherited from Stream.)
Public method Equals(Object)Determines whether the specified object is equal to the current object. (Inherited from Object.)
Protected method FinalizeAllows an object to try to free resources and perform other cleanup operations before it is reclaimed by garbage collection. (Inherited from Object.)
Public method FlushOverrides the Flush method so that no action is performed. (Overrides StreamFlush.)
Public method FlushAsyncAsynchronously clears all buffers for this stream and causes any buffered data to be written to the underlying device. (Inherited from Stream.)
Public method FlushAsync(CancellationToken)Asynchronously clears all buffers for this stream, causes any buffered data to be written to the underlying device, and monitors cancellation requests. (Inherited from Stream.)
Public method GetHashCodeServes as a hash function for a particular type. (Inherited from Object.)
Public method GetLifetimeServiceRetrieves the current lifetime service object that controls the lifetime policy for this instance. (Inherited from MarshalByRefObject.)
Public method GetTypeGets the Type of the current instance. (Inherited from Object.)
Protected method Initialize(Byte*, Int64, Int64, FileAccess)Initializes a new instance of the UnmanagedMemoryStream class by using a pointer to an unmanaged memory location.
Protected method Initialize(SafeBuffer, Int64, Int64, FileAccess)Initializes a new instance of the UnmanagedMemoryStream class in a safe buffer with a specified offset, length, and file access.
Public method InitializeLifetimeServiceObtains a lifetime service object to control the lifetime policy for this instance. (Inherited from MarshalByRefObject.)
Protected method MemberwiseCloneCreates a shallow copy of the current Object. (Inherited from Object.)
Protected method MemberwiseClone(Boolean)Creates a shallow copy of the current MarshalByRefObject object. (Inherited from MarshalByRefObject.)
Protected method ObjectInvariantInfrastructure. Obsolete. Provides support for a Contract. (Inherited from Stream.)
Public method ReadReads the specified number of bytes into the specified array. (Overrides StreamRead(Byte, Int32, Int32).)
Public method ReadAsync(Byte, Int32, Int32)Asynchronously reads a sequence of bytes from the current stream and advances the position within the stream by the number of bytes read. (Inherited from Stream.)
Public method ReadAsync(Byte, Int32, Int32, CancellationToken)Asynchronously reads a sequence of bytes from the current stream, advances the position within the stream by the number of bytes read, and monitors cancellation requests. (Inherited from Stream.)
Public method ReadByteReads a byte from a stream and advances the position within the stream by one byte, or returns -1 if at the end of the stream. (Overrides StreamReadByte.)
Public method SeekSets the current position of the current stream to the given value. (Overrides StreamSeek(Int64, SeekOrigin).)
Public method SetLengthSets the length of a stream to a specified value. (Overrides StreamSetLength(Int64).)
Public method ToStringReturns a string that represents the current object. (Inherited from Object.)
Public method WriteWrites a block of bytes to the current stream using data from a buffer. (Overrides StreamWrite(Byte, Int32, Int32).)
Public method WriteAsync(Byte, Int32, Int32)Asynchronously writes a sequence of bytes to the current stream and advances the current position within this stream by the number of bytes written. (Inherited from Stream.)
Public method WriteAsync(Byte, Int32, Int32, CancellationToken)Asynchronously writes a sequence of bytes to the current stream, advances the current position within this stream by the number of bytes written, and monitors cancellation requests. (Inherited from Stream.)
Public method WriteByteWrites a byte to the current position in the file stream. (Overrides StreamWriteByte(Byte).)
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Extension Methods
  NameDescription
Public Extension Method AsInputStreamConverts a managed stream in the .NET for Windows Store apps to an input stream in the Windows Runtime. (Defined by WindowsRuntimeStreamExtensions.)
Public Extension Method AsOutputStreamConverts a managed stream in the .NET for Windows Store apps to an output stream in the Windows Runtime. (Defined by WindowsRuntimeStreamExtensions.)
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Remarks

This class supports access to unmanaged memory using the existing stream-based model and does not require that the contents in the unmanaged memory be copied to the heap.

Examples

The following code example demonstrates how to read from and write to unmanaged memory using the UnmanagedMemoryStream class. A block of unmanaged memory is allocated and de-allocated using the Marshal class.

// Note: you must compile this sample using the unsafe flag. 
// From the command line, type the following: csc sample.cs /unsafe 

using System;
using System.IO;
using System.Text;
using System.Runtime.InteropServices;

unsafe class TestWriter
{

    static void Main()
	{
		
            // Create some data to read and write. 
            byte[] message = UnicodeEncoding.Unicode.GetBytes("Here is some data.");

	    // Allocate a block of unmanaged memory and return an IntPtr object.	
            IntPtr memIntPtr = Marshal.AllocHGlobal(message.Length);

            // Get a byte pointer from the IntPtr object. 
            byte* memBytePtr = (byte*) memIntPtr.ToPointer();

            // Create an UnmanagedMemoryStream object using a pointer to unmanaged memory.
            UnmanagedMemoryStream writeStream = new UnmanagedMemoryStream(memBytePtr, message.Length, message.Length, FileAccess.Write);

            // Write the data.
            writeStream.Write(message, 0, message.Length);

            // Close the stream.
            writeStream.Close();

            // Create another UnmanagedMemoryStream object using a pointer to unmanaged memory.
            UnmanagedMemoryStream readStream = new UnmanagedMemoryStream(memBytePtr, message.Length, message.Length, FileAccess.Read);

	    // Create a byte array to hold data from unmanaged memory. 
            byte[] outMessage = new byte[message.Length];

            // Read from unmanaged memory to the byte array.
            readStream.Read(outMessage, 0, message.Length);

            // Close the stream.
            readStream.Close();

            // Display the data to the console.
            Console.WriteLine(UnicodeEncoding.Unicode.GetString(outMessage));

            // Free the block of unmanaged memory.
            Marshal.FreeHGlobal(memIntPtr);

            Console.ReadLine();
    }
}
Version Information

.NET Framework

Supported in: 4.5, 4, 3.5, 3.0, 2.0

.NET Framework Client Profile

Supported in: 4, 3.5 SP1
Platforms

Windows 8, Windows Server 2012, Windows 7, Windows Vista SP2, Windows Server 2008 (Server Core Role not supported), Windows Server 2008 R2 (Server Core Role supported with SP1 or later; Itanium not supported)

The .NET Framework does not support all versions of every platform. For a list of the supported versions, see .NET Framework System Requirements.

Thread Safety
Any public static (Shared in Visual Basic) members of this type are thread safe. Any instance members are not guaranteed to be thread safe.